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Around 33 to 40 percent of food goes to waste each year. A large chunk of that comes down to complex problems in global food supply chain management that most restaurants have little control over. What restaurants can do, however, is re-think how their direct food supply is managed – from transport to inventory control.
Many restaurant operators have misconceptions about average order volume (AOV) and how it works, making statements like: I need more customers to make more money. In this article, youll learn simple, practical strategies to make it happenno awkward upselling or overcomplicated tactics required. Try a server game like Perfect Order.
In this article, we delve into five key ways that you should be using your POS data to forecast holiday demand for your restaurant. Whether it was your signature menu items, seasonal specials, or a festive holiday cocktail that puts a new spin on a classic, tailoring your menu can grab the attention of those looking to try something new.
A growing number of chefs are shifting their attention to independent operations that focus on foods with wider appeal that need a commitment to excellence. Cheese should be from a local or regional cheesemaker and let the customer know where it came from and why its so special. Everybody loves food that you can hold in your hands.
The magnetism of the kitchen dates to those early days of growing up in a home where food played an important role, not as much as some, but enough to leave an indelible mark on my life. At least from my own experience there is comfort and excitement every time I enter a professional kitchen.
This article explores their charm, global influence, and the key elements that fuel their success. Their appeal isn’t in extravagance but in simplicity—chalkboard menus scribbled with daily specials, circular tables, folding chairs, and the clink of wine glasses. They are top spots for the best food in France.
Are you doing all the right thingsserving amazing food, delivering top-notch service, crafting perfectly balanced drinksbut the tables still arent filling up like they should? The problem isnt your food or serviceits visibility and customer engagementand were going to help you fix that. Upload high-quality photos.
Nowadays, running a successful restaurant takes more than great food and good service. Another way to get local backlinks is from local news articles, food bloggers, or restaurant directories to boost your visibility in search results. Make sure to add high-quality photos of your food, interior, and staff.
It blends sales data, food cost, and menu psychology to help you stop guessing and start making decisions that grow your margins. Real menu engineering efforts are grounded in hard numbers: data, food cost percentage, and how much profit each dish actually brings in, so you know exactly what to promote, rework, or cut.
In this guide, youll learn how to use ChowNow tools along with a handful of other effective strategies to increase order volume, boost your current customer traffic, and grow your overall sales. Email marketing is one of the most effective ways to stay top-of-mind with customers and remind them its time to order again from your restaurant.
By Bailey Ramsey, Contributor Food waste is a critical issue in the restaurant industry. To put this in perspective, restaurants waste anywhere between 4% to 10% of the food they purchase. Predicting Customer Demand Accurately One of the leading causes of food waste in restaurants is overproduction.
The right promotion at the right time can reignite business, whether that means a packed dining room on a slow weekday or reconnecting with loyal customers who havent ordered in a while. Are you trying to increase your direct online ordering ? If youve got a big outdoor patio, maybe a summer evening special event is the best move.
In almost every conversation I have with other industry professionals, someone will say “before COVID… ” or “since COVID… ” As a matter of fact, in many of my articles I make the same comparison. Controlling food waste is a hot topic in the industry as well. This is a trend I hope will go away.
If youre one of the thousands of restaurants that added online food delivery in recent years, you might be wondering: is it actually helping my business grow? These metrics give you a clear picture of your delivery performancefrom order volume and customer retention to delivery speed and profitability.
After all, it’s not just the quality of your food that can keep customers coming back — 73% of diners base their satisfaction on the quality of service they receive. In this article: What strategies do you use to motivate and engage your restaurant employees? Hiring the right people can make or break your business.
Do orders get lost in the shuffle between different platforms? If managing food delivery feels more like a headache than a revenue stream, youre not alone. With 52% of consumers saying that ordering out is essential to their lifestyle, every restaurant that wants to stay competitive must offer delivery.
Every online order, email sign up, and reward program interaction generates valuable insightsbut if that data just sits there, youre missing a major opportunity. Think about it: What if you could automatically send a special offer to a customer who hasnt ordered in a while? Restaurants collect a ton of customer data.
In this article, you will learn: How to define your restaurants target market to guide your business decisions. Climate & Seasonality: Does the weather impact what people order or when they dine out? Ask yourself: Dining Preferences: Do they prioritize health-conscious options, indulgent comfort food, or trendy dishes?
Have you noticed how food delivery apps are becoming essential in attracting and retaining diners? In this article, we’ll show you exactly how to create a food delivery app tailored to your restaurant’s needs, while staying competitive in a booming industry. The global online food delivery market size was valued at USD 221.65
In this article, you will learn: The five most important restaurant costs to track and manage Easy strategies for controlling food costs and labor costs Tactics to save money without hurting your guest experience Lets start with the big picture and learn where your money is actually going.
The National Retail Federation estimates that 41 percent of consumers will celebrate Valentine’s day with a special dinner or celebration at home. This article includes some simple digital marketing strategies that restaurants can quickly implement ahead of the Valentine’s Day holiday. Make Your Menu the Main Course.
Whether through supporting local charities or participating in food drives, local restaurants can become go-to places for customers who want to support their community. Keep your hours updated as well, especially if you have special holiday hours or seasonal changes. Use local keywords in your social media posts, too.
Increasing your restaurants online order volume doesnt have to feel like an impossible task. In this guide, well walk through seven practical ways to boost your restaurants online order volume. Optimize Your Website and Online Ordering Experience If your restaurants website isnt easy to use, youre probably losing out on online orders.
When youre updating your online menu or online ordering system, its tempting to just copy over the dish names from your restaurant menu and call it a day. With a few simple techniques, you can write menu descriptions that sounds natural, highlight your best dishes, and help guests feel confident (and excited) about ordering.
In this article, youre going to learn five restaurant customer retention strategies that will not only keep your current regulars happy but will also help you grow your repeat customer base. Its significantly more cost-effective to keep your regulars walking through the door than it is to get a new customer every time you take an order.
By the time you finish this article, youll know how to approach restaurant marketing the right way and not waste time doing guesswork, crossing your fingers, and then hoping you see new customers walking through the door. Everything from food to labor is getting more expensive, which means restaurant margins are tighter than ever.
The ancestors of the first semi-automatic machines to serve food and drink are still in use today, though instead of restaurants and bars, we see them in public spaces, perhaps small shops. This is what we discuss in this article. Order-Only Automats: Pros and Cons. What Are the Pitfalls of Order-Only Machines?
Understanding what customers order, when they order, and how often is an untapped goldmine of information for restaurant operators. What do repeat orders say about our customer preferences? Ordering data includes more than just what gets sold. Which dishes are getting ordered the most?
A bar is a profitable business option if you’re looking to enter the food industry. In this article: How to calculate your profit margin for your bar What is the average profit margin for bars? Start by tracking all the income your bar generates, including sales from drinks, food, and any additional services.
You can’t treat your restaurant’s online presence as a set-it-and-forget-it digital business card anymore; it’s a dynamic growth engine for attracting new customers, driving repeat visits, and boosting direct orders. Whatever it is, your restaurant’s online presence is shaping the decision of whether or not they’ll place an order.
This is great news for restaurants, but they should also be prepared for an influx of customers coming with their most special guests, and expecting nothing but a prime customer experience that will pamper their mothers. Over the last few years, many restaurants and food service establishments have struggled with staff shortages.
From managing reservations at the host stand or firing orders straight to the kitchen from table side, tablets are changing the way restaurants run. Bonus points if the interface is also customer-friendly, especially if you plan to use tablets for self-ordering or digital menus. Its a nightmare. Clean, simple, and way less stressful.
If you want to increase order volume for your restaurant, focusing on online takeout and delivery is key. But growing online order volume isnt always easy. Many restaurants struggle with high third-party app fees, low website traffic, and clunky ordering experiences that drive customers away.
With a few key optimizations, your restaurant can rank higher on Google, get noticed by people searching for places to eat, and ultimately drive more foot traffic and online orders. In this article, you will learn: How to optimize your Google Business Profile to boost visibility and credibility. Leave us a review on Google!
Somewhere in between is the number that makes sense for your food costs, your market, and your restaurants unique position. Food Costs: How to calculate the cost of each dish Lets start with the basics: how much does it actually cost you to make each item on your menu? Set prices too low, and youre leaving money on the table.
The tasks of the chef are fairly universal: planning menus, putting your signature on each dish, hiring and training staff, ordering product and building vendor relationships, controlling costs and adhering to budgets, maintaining a clean and safe kitchen environment, etc.
Online ordering has transformed the restaurant industry, turning what was once a convenience into an absolute necessity. In 2025, the US online food delivery market is expected to reach $424.9 Customers expect to browse menus, place orders, and pay for their meals with just a few taps of their phones. billion in revenue.
In this article: How to calculate your restaurant customer acquisition cost (CAC) How to optimize your restaurant’s CAC and reduce costs What is a good cost per customer acquisition? For example, if you run a social media campaign or pay for online ordering integrations, all of these contribute to your overall marketing expenses.
Keeping menus updated across various online ordering systems and third-party delivery apps can feel like a never-ending game of catch-up. Manually updating menus across multiple online ordering channels is tedious, time-consuming, and prone to mistakes. The growing popularity of online ordering has only made this challenge more urgent.
With rapid advances happening across various industries, including the food industry, you might be wondering: What does AI have to do with running my restaurant? It allows AI to understand and respond to human language, which is how virtual assistants can answer customer questions or take online orders. The short answer?
77% of diners look at a restaurants website before going out to eat or ordering takeout or delivery. If you dont have a website, that means over three-quarters of the people near your restaurantyour potential customerswill never come in or place an order because they have no way to find you when theyre looking for a place to eat.
According to an article by BBC, McDonald's is investing in an Artificial Intelligence start-up to help serve data-driven meal choices. Uber is planning to start a program to deliver food via drones in San Diego, California. Therefore, tracking food in the supply chain becomes important. Robot’s special on the menu?
They are the people I am most comfortable around – people with whom I share something important – preparing food. There are times when a nod, closed eyes, and smile signified just how delicious a nightly special was – a dish prepared by a cook, from his or her heart. In all cases – I have learned something from them.
The hotel restaurant doesn’t serve lunch (except for special events) which gives us a chance to catch our breath. Emmett is flying through breakfast orders (he always amazes me), pauses to give me a thumbs up and turns back to the flat top filled with egg pans, a handful of flapjacks on the griddle, and home fries ready to turn.
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